The Boston Red Sox have plenty of offseason work to do. Fresh off a third consecutive postseason miss, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has plenty of work ahead this winter to redirect the franchise to contention moving forward.
Boston got started early after reportedly severing ties with six members of last season’s coaching staff, but that’s just the start. The trade market and free agency offer plenty of creative avenues for the club to invest and polish up its roster that last season led baseball in blown saves following the MLB All-Star break and finished second with an American League-leading 115 errors committed. Yet… despite the need for offensive assistance, the Red Sox aren’t viewed as favorites to sign four-time All-Star Juan Soto.
“The (New York) Yankees are the favorite for Soto,” Jon Heyman of the New York Post said, per Bleacher Report. “He’s generally enjoyed his time, it’s worked out nicely. I think the Yankees are the favorite. The (New York) Mets are the second choice. They have the most money, they’re obviously a hot team. I could see him going there. I would say those are the two favorites with the Yankees being the clear one, the Mets next. And then after that, I would say Toronto (Blue Jays) and the (San Francisco) Giants, who did try to trade for Soto. (Los Angeles) Dodgers, you can never count them out of anything. I would say them next. And then the next group I would put the Red Sox, the (Chicago) Cubs and the (Philadelphia) Phillies. I mean at this point I would call them all long shots.”
Soto, who the Yankees acquired through a seven-player trade with the San Diego Padres last December, is poised to land a major payday this offseason. The 25-year-old earned $31 million debuting in The Big Apple while crushing a career-best 41 home runs — the fourth-most in baseball — with 109 RBIs through 157 appearances. Aaron Judge ($40 million annually), Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels ($35 million), Christian Yelich of the Milwaukee Brewers ($26 million) and Cody Bellinger of the Chicago Cubs ($26 million) are among the highest-paid outfielders today. Presumably, Soto will join that crew shortly, regardless if a deal is struck in New York or not.
The Red Sox aren’t certain they’ll be welcoming back Tyler O’Neill, who too becomes a free agent, fresh off leading Boston in home runs (31) in 2024. Therefore, entertaining Soto makes sense, especially considering adding a left-handed power hitter to work in tandem with Rafael Devers would be an all-time nightmare for pitchers — like Gerrit Cole. Soto is also a reliable defensive outfielder, has plenty of experience against AL East competition, and could make New York’s blood boil by joining the Red Sox.
